


diversion

by PantyPoison



Category: Life Is Strange (Video Game)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-14
Updated: 2015-05-14
Packaged: 2018-03-30 13:12:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3938083
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PantyPoison/pseuds/PantyPoison
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Warren corners Max and it’s the epitome of awkward. Luckily someone saves her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	diversion

Max stopped in her tracks and turned around sluggishly as she heard her name being called. All the way from across campus. Warren met her by the gates of the girls' dorm, bending over slightly to catch his breath. “I'm glad...I caught you...”

 

Max cracked a small, rueful smile. “You are pretty good at that.” He had been incredibly persistent lately, asking Max to tag along with him everywhere from the drive-ins to weird science seminars to the fucking bathroom. Warren was nice enough, and she didn't mean to turn him down so much, but it never seemed like a good time between studying, her other friends, and the stress of saving the entire town from a tornado. “So how can I help you?”

 

He seemed to be flattered by her comment, flashing her a toothy grin. “Well I just happened to score two tickets to this retro haunted house tonight. Nosferatu and that chick from the Exorcist, Rosemary's Baby, Michael Myers...”

 

“Sounds like a hell of a crossover,” Max commented.

 

“Right?! So I was thinkin'...it's probably dangerous to go alone, even for a fearless dude like me. So, you in?” When Max didn't reply immediately he added, “I promise I'll hold on to you if you get too scared. Totally understandable.”

 

Max had to physically restrain herself from wincing. Warren never did subtle well. “Mmm...no thanks.”

 

Warren sighed. “Come onnn, Maxine! We never hang out.”

 

“We hang out...in class...” Max knew she was reaching, but she really wasn't in the mood to deal with Warren's weird infatuation with her. She ran over excuses in her head, many of which she had probably used. “I'm sorry, it's just so short notice and-”

 

“Look, can I...I need to tell you something,” Warren said with some conviction.

 

_Oh lord no. Nononoono please-_

 

“You've probably noticed that I ask you out...to go do stuff with me a lot, right?”

 

This was so fucking awkward. “I...guess so...” her voice was level despite the fact that she was screaming internally. Why was this happening.

 

He nodded, grinning sheepishly. This might have been cute if she actually liked Warren that way, which unfortunately couldn't be farther from reality. “I guess I'm that obvious, huh?”

 

“Obvious about what?” Maybe if she played dumb he'd lose the nerve.

 

No such luck. “Max, you get me more than the other girls, and you don't talk down to me like Brooke. I feel like I can tell you anything.”

 

“Um.”

 

Her phone buzzed in her pocket and she reached for it instinctively, happy for the distraction. She didn't expect Warren to grab her wrist in the process, making her jump slightly.

 

“Do you have to take that now? I'm trying to tell you something,” he pleaded, his grip light but insistent.

 

She sighed, her limit just about reached. “Warren, you might have the wrong idea-”

 

“You won't even listen to what I'm trying to say!”

 

“Whooa, everything cool here?”

 

Warren instantly let go of Max, backing up slightly. She felt an arm snake around her shoulders and looked to her right. “Chloe!” It was a struggle not to sound _too_ overjoyed.

 

“Hey, babe,” Chloe was grinning like she only did when she was up to something.

 

“'Babe'? Since when did you-” she squeaked in surprise as Chloe's arm moved protectively around her waist. “Wow, okay. Hi.” She couldn't help but smile despite her confusion. Chloe's manic grin was fucking contagious.

 

“You're the girl from earlier, right? The punk in the truck,” Warren spoke up.

 

Chloe raised one eyebrow, sizing him up. “Yeah, that would be me. Can't say I remember you, though.”

 

Warren looked crestfallen at Max, who rolled her eyes and jabbed Chloe lightly on the shoulder. “Yes she does. This is Warren, the guy who took the heat from Nathan while we drove away.”

 

Chloe seemed to think about it for a moment before snapping her fingers. “Oooohh, right, right! In that case, thanks man. Really cool of you to look out for my girl like that.”

 

“Your...girl?” Warren's eyes practically popped.

 

Max's eyes widened along with his, this development in her and Chloe's relationship being news to her as well. “Oh, we're not- _haaa, h-hey_!” Max involuntarily squirmed as Chloe's hand traveled to the small of her back (her most sensitive spot, a fact that this punk was well aware of) and pressed on it gently with her thumb.

 

“C'mon, Captain Oblivious, follow my lead,” Chloe said softly, winking down at Max.

 

Warren still looked doubtful. “Max, I had no idea...that you even played for that team.”

 

Oh, _duh_. Chloe was giving her an out! If Warren thought she and Chloe were dating, he'd back off. If she could make him believe it.

 

“Uh, y-yeah! Girls are great. And Chloe's just...amazing, y'know? My lovely, um, partner in crime,” she cursed herself internally for sounding so stilted. The combination of being the center of attention, the fact that she was a bad liar, and the realization that this hypothetical relationship was making her more flustered than she cared to admit made all her words stick in her throat like sludge. Of course she'd thought about it before, given how close they were. That was normal, right?

 

“Never would have guessed that she was your type either,” Warren remarked. “I mean, you're so quiet and nice and she's-”

 

Max felt Chloe bristle next to her and decided to cut him off before he got punched. “I know, she's way out of my league, right?” she bumped Chloe's hips with her own, a flutter of satisfaction in her chest and Chloe's expression changed back to a grin.

 

“Well, I _am_ a hot piece,” she mused, clearly enjoying having her ego stroked.

 

“Hot piece of _ass._ ” Two could play at this game. She wondered if she could get Chloe to blush.

 

She could have sworn she saw Chloe's eyes widen slightly. “Hey, you love my ass!”

 

She did have a nice one, not that Max had ever said so. “The jeans probably have a lot to do with it, Sheena. They do look great on you.”

 

“Dude, fuck my jeans,” Chloe let go of Max and did a little spin to prove her point. “See that? One hundred percent Price ass. Right, Warren?”

 

Max almost felt sorry for him standing there awkwardly while all this was unfolding. “U-um...”

 

“Don't encourage her,” Max said, almost laughing at how ridiculous Chloe was acting for her sake. The whole ruse seemed to be working on Warren, anyway. His expression was somewhere between crushed and amazed. Two girls flirting right in front of him. Every boy's dream, right? Ew.

 

Chloe grabbed Max by the hips and pulled gently against her, close as possible. “Let's go to your room, I'll take the jeans off and you can judge for yourself,” she said, giving Max a devious Cheshire Cat smile. Okay, she was obviously enjoying this _way_ too much. Focus, Max, she told herself, trying to shake off the blood rushing to her face. If Chloe wanted to be a tease, she could be one too.

 

She tried to channel all the confidence of a high school romcom protagonist who knows that she's finally won over her love interest. “Oh no, this time I get to do it,” she said, reaching up to tug on the collar of Chloe's jacket. She had to stand on her tiptoes but the surprised look on Chloe's face was worth it. _Score one for Max_ , she thought. Chloe's eyes darted to Max's lips for a split second before she caught herself.

 

“Oh...you wanna do it, huh?” she said, swaying her hips just slightly. She was obviously trying to be sultry but her face was getting redder by the second. What a _nerd._ “You sure you can handle this, Mad Max?” her voice was husky and soft, their faces being inches apart. Max could smell the cinnamon gum she always carried around on her breath. She wondered if it would be too overboard to actually kiss Chloe. For the sake of their act, of course.

 

This game was getting a little too dangerous. Max's steadily increasing heart rate confirmed that.

 

“So this, uh, actually explains a lot...”

 

Never had Max been so thankful for one of Warren's interruptions. She removed herself from Chloe, who sniggered at the sight of their observer's gawking face. “Sorry, I probably should have-”

 

“No, it's cool! I'll uh...catch you later, okay? I dug up some more info about wormholes that I can email you.”

 

Max smiled politely. “That would be great, thanks.”

 

Warren waved to Chloe awkwardly as he walked away, glancing back at them a couple of times, an unmistakable look of 'what the fuck just happened?' written all over his features.

 

Chloe burst out laughing as soon as he was out of sight, punching Max in the shoulder. “Dude, that was so brutal! Did you see his fuckin' face?”

 

Max rubbed her shoulder. “Okay, first of all, _ow?_ Watch where you're swinging those guns, Rock. And he's actually pretty harmless.”

 

Chloe scoffed. “Oh, please. I know his type. I could have kicked his ass when he grabbed your arm like that. You're lucky I was around to save you before he pulled any 'Nice Guy' shit.”

 

“That _was_ really awkward. I owe you big time.”

 

Chloe shrugged. “Eh. How many times have you saved my life? Now I finally got you once.”

 

Max raised her eyebrows. “That's hardly a fair comparison.”

 

“I saved your rep _and_ your romantic life. Trust me,” she said sagely, swaying on the balls of her feet. “Smooth acting, by the way.”

 

Max resisted the urge to hide her face. “No comment.”

 

“Max was flirrrrting with meeee,” Chloe teased. “Seriously sistah, why have I never seen those moves before? I was totally under your spell.”

 

Max pondered if she should get into it. She had been trying to drop hints that she would be open to dating Chloe for the past month but she was just so oblivious. “Because I don't flirt with just anyone. I'm a loser.”

 

“Bullshit, supergirl. You saved the whole fucking town from a tornado,” she reached over and rubbed Max's shoulder reassuringly. “And you've got hella charm. You could flirt with, like, a movie star and win them over instantly.”

 

Max meant to sigh inwardly, but it came out in a frustrated exhale. “Hey, what's up?”

 

Max removed Chloe's arm from her shoulders and held it gently, looking her in the eyes. “I don't _want_ to flirt with anyone else, Chloe.”

 

“Oh...okay. Whatever, man,” she said, obviously not getting it. When Max didn't let go, something clicked in Chloe's head. “Whoa okay, wait. That was you flirting for real?”

 

Fucking finally, Max thought. Only took her a month to catch on. “Is that a...bad thing?” Max said out loud, releasing Chloe and crossing her arms. She felt exposed.

 

“No! God no, it's just....wow.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Chloe exhaled skyward, at a loss for words. After a few moments she tried “Since when-”

 

“Probably after I took that photo of you rocking out on your bed. Right before I took the heat from Madsen about your joint.”

 

“Jesus,” Chloe exclaimed softly. “That early? Max...you could have told me. You're my best friend.”

 

“I've been trying,” Max said evenly, staring at the grass.

 

“Well, it's news to me,” Chloe insisted. She sounded confused, maybe even hurt. As if she had been the one constantly trying to get Max's attention instead of the other way around, Max thought a little bitterly.

 

“I literally confessed to you the day I saved the town, remember?” As Chloe had piggybacked her away and she was barely conscious. She had slept for three days afterward, a long, black, dreamless slumber. Telling Chloe that she loved her was the only thing she remembered. Or had she dreamed that?

 

The look on Chloe's face told her otherwise. “I thought you were just delirious! You almost died, dude.”

 

“I thought I was going to,” Max said, softly. “So I wanted to let you know...just in case...” she didn't have to finish. Admittedly it did hurt that Chloe had never acknowledged what she had said that day, but it wasn't worth bringing up. Not now that her feelings were out in the open.

 

“Wow...” Max was afraid Chloe would bolt when she turned away from her, but the punk merely walked over to the brick partition in from of the dorms and leaned against it, holding her head in one hand. “I am...a fucking dumbass.”

 

Max rolled her eyes, but she couldn't bring herself to be mad. “C'mere,” she said softly, walking up to Chloe and wrapping her arms around her shoulders. Chloe hugged back, gently, almost guiltily.

 

“I'm sorry.”

 

Max shook her head, smiling reassuringly. “You don't need to apologize. More importantly...what exactly are we?”

 

“Well...we're bonded for life, remember?” Chloe said after a beat, swaying Max back and forth on her feet.

 

“Is that your way of saying you like me back, cheeseball?”

 

“Please, Maxeroni, you've got me way beat when it comes to cheeziness,” Cocky as ever. “Even when you flirt. I really thought you were gonna kiss me right in front of what's his face.”

 

“Ew, you wanted a nerd to kiss you?”

 

“Okay, well,” she paused to look around for effect before bringing her attention back to the girl in her arms “don't tell anyone but I kind of have a thing for cute nerds. Photography nerds. With pretty freckles.”

 

“Hmmm, I wonder who you could _possibly_ be referring to?”

 

They leaned toward each other so naturally that Max didn't even realize it had happened until she felt Chloe's lips on hers. Her mouth tasted like cigarettes and cinnamon, a combination Max never thought could have been pleasant until this moment. Chloe hummed in approval, the noise against Max's lips making them curve upward into a smile. If she hadn't exhausted those damn time powers she would definitely be tempted to freeze this moment.

 

“Okay, Warren would have totally bugged out if he saw that,” Max laughed when they pulled away, nuzzling Chloe's shoulder.

 

“I don't think you have to wonder about that,” Chloe gently turned Max around by her shoulders. Max was able to catch Warren's eye from all the way across the quad before he darted behind a wall of the Academy building. From his guilty expression it was all too evident that he had been watching them.

 

“God, you've gotta be fucking kidding me,” Max groaned, turning away in embarrassment.

 

“Is he still looking?” Chloe asked, a mischievous glee in her voice.

 

“I don't wanna know.”

 

“You should have seen the look on his face. Ew, do you think he's getting off on this?”

 

Max made a noise of utter despair from the back of her throat.

 

Chloe laughed, grabbing Max's hand and squeezing it. “I'm kidding, that's gross. But he's definitely not gonna chase after you anymore. And if he does his ass is grass.”

 

Protective mode engaged. Max could have swooned. “My hero,” she said in a falsetto voice, swaying their joined hands back and forth. “I'll even join you.”

 

 


End file.
